Wall Street rises on upbeat global manufacturing data

By IBT Staff Reporter On 07/01/09 AT 1:00 PM

U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday as improving prospects for manufacturing around the world suggested the global economy was recovering.

U.S. manufacturing contracted less than expected in June, underscoring growing sentiment among investors that corporate profits will benefit from the recovery. U.S. earnings season gets into gear next week.

General Mills , the maker of Cheerios cereal, gave investors more reason to be optimistic about the economy after the food company forecast better-than-expected earnings for the current fiscal year, and its stock rose 3.3 percent to $57.89. The S&P Consumer Staples sector advanced 2.1 percent.

In the latest readings on the global economy, surveys from Europe showed manufacturing was shrinking less than initially thought and in China's case, growing modestly.

For several weeks, we've seen some stronger economic numbers in Europe and China, said Janna Sampson, co-chief investment officer at OakBrook Investments in Lisle, Illinois. And in the U.S., (things) are not as bad as what people were thinking.